Guest Essay: Think conscious action

A few weeks ago, I attended an event called “Paths to Success,” hosted by the Summit Federal Credit Union. In addition to me, the event featured Heidi MacPherson, president of SUNY Brockport, and Melisza Campos, vice president of operations and instruction for the Dale Carnegie Rochester office. Each of us told the story of our “path,” how we defined it and the steps we took to get there.

It was an incredible morning of discussion, inspiration, and networking.

And I was honored to tell my story. My story starts like this: every achievement in my life — in my career, my family — has been the result of conscious action.

And I’d like to share a few with you today.

Action 1: DO

It’s not what you say, it’s what you DO that matters.

One of the biggest conscious actions of doing in my life was creating Partners + Napier. It was born from the former ad agency, Wolf Group — which, at the time, wasn’t doing well. Our futures — and the jobs of the 40 people who worked for us — were growing more and more uncertain.

So, my business partners and I decided to DO. We took a huge leap of faith and put everything on the line to save our agency. Three days after closing the Wolf Group, we opened the doors to Partners + Napier.

In this case of DO — we decided, we made a plan, and we did it.

Action 2: Embrace different perspectives

David Ogilvy always said, “Lead from a roundtable.”

This quote means a lot to me: be open to different perspectives and ideas. As an agency, we have to be open to the 125-people who walk in the door every day. Without openness and different points of view, groupthink happens: tone deafness, divisiveness, bad choices (think Kendall Jenner Pepsi commercial, bad).

As a business, we need diversity of thought — and talent. That’s how the best decisions get made, with new brains contributing different ideas on any given day.

I couldn’t talk about mental toughness without mentioning Hillary Clinton. Politics aside — that woman is tough as nails. She recently gave this advice: “Toughen up your skin. Be ready. It’s not a new phenomenon, but it feels new and painful every time it happens to you.”

In my career, I’ve been called bossy, too driven, an absentee parent and yes, I’ll say it, criticized in a different way than, let’s say, a male CEO might be. But staying tough and "getting back up again" always stuck with me.

I say when the world tells you, “YOU CAN’T,” just say “WATCH ME.”

Maybe you’ll take some of these actions into your own lives and careers. Remember. Do all that it takes to get it done. Listen to others. Thicken your skin. Think conscious action.